Headscratchers / Hocus Pocus 2

• In the first film, Allison mentions that Winifred Sanderson's spell book was given to her by the Devil himself, hence that iconic scene of the Sanderson Sisters adoring Garry Marshall's character, who had dressed as the Devil for Halloween. However, it's shown here that the one who gave Winnie the spellbook was the Mother Witch. So who gave the spell book to the eldest Sanderson sister? The Devil or Mother Witch?
  • Perhaps they're one and the same. Shapeshifting is a well-established ability for witches and demons in folklore.
  • Perhaps Mother Witch is the middle-woman, and the book went from The Devil to Mother Witch to the Sanderson Sisters.
  • And Winifred is most definitely egotistical enough to claim that she was given the book by The Devil himself even if that is stretching the facts a bit.
• Gilbert says the book helped him make a new black flame candle and that it “wasn’t pretty.” Ummm, the black flame candle is made from the fat of a hanged man… And those aren’t too common in 2022. Did… did Gilbert murder someone?
  • Gilbert was able to use a toy spider for Magicae Maxima when the required ingredient was a petrified spider, so workarounds are possible. Assumingly he was able to get the fat elsewhere and pass it off as "hanged man's fat".
  • On the other hand, the last time we saw Jay and Ice, they were locked up in cages in the Sanderson museum - meaning they were left HANGING...
  • Or it came from a hanged male animal carcass at the local butcher's shop. The book doesn't specify that fat had to be human.
    • The candle was made from the fat of a "hangman" (an executioner) not a HANGED man. Also, the word "man" (as opposed to "male") implies human.
    • ...which thankfully mitigates the Fridge Horror, but the hangman's fat is presumably even more difficult to obtain...
• The first Hocus Pocus is apparently a movie that exists within the Hocus Pocus universe. Even if it's just a little gag for the fans, how on Earth did this happen In-Universe?
  • Maybe in this universe, Gilbert wrote the script.
  • Max or Dani could’ve been behind it. Maybe one of them ended up working in the film industry, or knew someone who did.
  • Perhaps as the only Hocus Pocus scene featured in that part was one of the few Garry Marshall's "Devil" and Penny Marshall's "Medusa" had in the original film, in the film's universe, it's an unrelated film about a man who likes to dress devilishly and his wife who has curly hair...
• Billy's gravestone says he died in 1695. But Winnie poisoned him and she was hanged in 1693. Also, why is Billy's accent far more pronounced than it was in the previous film?
  • His gravestone says 1st May 1693, so Winifred murdered him five months before the sisters were hanged. Regarding his accent, I’d say we’re just not used to hearing his voice since he only spoke briefly in the first film. The accent is the same in both films.
• As pointed out in the IMDB goofs section, how could Gilbert have witnessed the climax of the first film when all of the children of Salem were in a trance at that point?
  • Gilbert is clearly capable of performing magic and therefore he, like Winnifred, is immune.
  • Well maybe since Sarah's song calls for the children to come to them, Gilbert just kept following them from the house to the cemetery. The first time he sees them could have been right before Sarah starts singing, so he wouldn't have been in a trance then.
• If Gilbert has wanted to bring back the sisters since he was a child, why didn't he stay a virgin? Then he wouldn't have needed to trick anyone else into it.
  • Gilbert is only human, so maybe he had a one night stand that he later regretted.
• The movie starts in 1653, on Winifred's 16th birthday, which means she was born in 1637, which means, in 1693, she was only 56 years old. All three of the witches were old hags in 1693, before they sucked the life out of Emily Binx, so it wouldn't make sense for Winifred to only be 56 and her sisters, even younger than that and look so elderly.
  • Perhaps certain black magics cause premature ageing?
  • Another possibility: the original Hocus Pocus is shown to be a movie within the world of the film. Therefore, it's a fictionalized portrayal of what really happened. For dramatic effect, it makes them look older than they really were when they killed Emily. This could also explain the other inconsistencies, like the fact that Winifred supposedly received the spell book from the Devil instead of the Mother Witch.
  • Perhaps since they lived out in the woods, away from town, the rough living aged them. We are talking the rural 1600s without the skincare products, health awareness or cosmetic surgery of the present day.
• Are all three Sanderson sisters true born witches? This film seems to suggest that Winifred is the only true witch, with Mary and Sarah having magic just by virtue of being Winifred’s coven i.e. they have a collective magic, with Winifred being the main spell-caster and the other two providing support with the backing chant. They try to mirror this with Becca, Izzy and Cassie sharing Becca’s power at the end - which is I wondered if there’s only one true witch in the coven while the other two share hers. Will Izzy and Cassie gain magic on their sixteenth birthdays? However, I personally believe that the Sanderson sisters are all witches themselves since Mary and Sarah are shown having magic independent of Winifred, with Mary’s heightened sense of smell and Sarah’s hypnotic song. Winifred turned sixteen first as the eldest sister and was gifted Book, so perhaps Mary and Sarah would gain their powers on their own sixteenth birthdays. It’s not a huge headscratcher, but I was just curious to see what other people thought. I’m not fond of the implication that Mary and Sarah aren’t true witches themselves.
  • I don't like the idea myself, but I have to admit it's a nice way to explain why Mary and Sarah so slavishly follow Winnie's orders.
• So why did Mike lead the witches to the Traske's house?
  • Because he is unintelligent, and frightened. Any frightened creature which also lacks intelligence will run to the nearest safety it can find.